The present invention relates to sport equipment, and in particular to a goaltender leg pad.
Goaltenders in certain sports, such as hockey, typically are engaged in a high level of contact with other players and implements of the game, such as pucks and sticks. A goaltender's job is to prevent the puck or other item from entering the goal by catching the puck with a glove, or blocking the puck with a glove, a hockey stick, the goaltender's body or various pads such as leg pads.
Goaltender leg pads protect the goaltender's leg and also operate to provide a substantial blocking element. For the goaltender to prevent pucks from entering the goal, typically goaltenders will drop to one or both knees with their skates spread apart so that the puck cannot enter the goal, effectively using the leg pads to block the puck.
Goaltender leg pads are usually bulky and rigid. Most include multiple pads that are joined with one another to cover the front surface of a goaltender's leg. Leg pads come with either one of two profiles—straight or curved. Some goaltenders may desire certain other features of the leg pad. If those features do not come with the straight or curved front profile, then the goaltender must try to modify the leg pads. For example, if the goaltender acquires a leg pad with a relatively straight front profile and desires more of a curve, the goaltender has to forcibly push and/or compress the leg pad downward to create the desired curved shape. Where a goaltender acquires a leg pad with a large profile curve, they are usually stuck with that curve because it is difficult to straighten the curved front profile of the leg pads. Further, even after being forced into a desired profile, the pads typically will return to their original shape.
Most goaltender leg pads also come with a foot pad that generally sits atop the goaltender's skates. The foot pad is usually attached to the toe of the skate with an inelastic lace that extends downwardly from the foot pad, around a component of the skate, and then reattaches to the foot pad. This attachment generally keeps the skate and foot pad in close proximity. However, the laces used in this system generally do not provide a consistent return of the foot pad to a position over the skate. Further, when transitioning from a crouched or standing position, this can make the foot pad, and thus the leg pad, feel off balanced and sloppy. In some cases, the pad can remain in an undesired location over the skate and can cause an impediment to the goaltender's movement.
The foot pads of most conventionally manufactured leg pads also come in either one of two different thicknesses. The thickness of the foot pad generally dictates the engagement of the foot pad with the ice or other surface upon which the goaltender moves. Some foot pads are constructed to be flat so that when the user goes into a deep crouch, the pad does not engage the ice or surface. Others are slightly rounded, and in some cases, engage the surface more easily when in a crouching position. Again, goaltenders usually must trade off the ice engagement for some other feature of the goaltender leg pads, depending on a goaltender's preferences.